PETITIONS TO SIGN: STOP TTIP/TAFTA & THE TPP.

People have cautioned against petition fatigue, but please consider adding your name to the petitions below. European Union MPs need to know that they are acting on behalf of the wants and needs of millions of Europeans and petitions are currently one of the easiest ways to communicate with them en masse.

The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) and the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) are called trade deals, but both are corporate wish-lists aimed at attacking everything from environmental protections to affordable medicines to internet freedoms. Worse, they give corporations impunity from governments or citizens that want to reign in their power..

Tobacco giant Philip Morris is suing Australia for billions of dollars in lost profits because the government took action to reduce teenage smoking. Pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly is suing Canada for $500 million, just because Canada has laws to keep essential drugs affordable.

Worst of all, these cases are happening in secret international courts to which only corporations have access.

Without governmental protection and given free reign, laissez-faire capitalism would stop at nothing to create profits for the already rich shareholders who own big businesses. Governments offer us protection with laws regarding child labor, collective bargaining, competition (antitrust), environmental protection, equal opportunity, intellectual property, minimum wage, occupational safety and health and so on. The only purpose of free trade agreements is to circumvent these protections, profiting from a global economy where local restrictions can be overcome by outsourcing to “business friendly” locations. After all it seems obvious that producing and consuming locally without transportation costs should be economically sounder. Sign this petition to make and keep local economies a reality!